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Sunday, 20 October 2013

BFI London Film Festival - The Zero Theorem

I have to be honest, I'm still not even sure what this film was really about. But I took that as 'that's what you get from a Terry Gilliam'.

I saw the film at 12:30 in the morning and I was very tired, so I was dazed when I had the crazy that is 'The Zero Theorem' thrown at me. I was intrigued by the new Terry Gilliam film, especially as this was the was the newest things since The Disappoint of Doctor Parnassus. The cast too intrigued me, Christoph Waltz with a bald head and no eyebrows as well as David Thewlis dressed in a tiger costume, not to mention the many amazing actors that paraded through the film.

The story centres around Qohen Leth (Christoph Waltz), a reclusive corporate worker who lives in a futuristic corporate world. He dislikes the atmosphere at work and wants to be alone at home and is obsessed with receiving a mysterious phone call which he believes will give him purpose in life. Under the instruction of the 'Managemnet' Qohen is assigned to solve the 'Zero Theorem'. It is a mathematical formula which determines whether life has any meaning.

Apart from the questionable story, the world in which Qohen exists is incredible. Described by someone as a 'gritty' cityscape, I see this is as an element that contributes to the mixed up dystopian-esque buildings and modern technology, the design of the world as well as the clothes, gadgets and even food creates a world that does scream out for an actual meaning. Visually, the film is a feast for the eyes and actually helps explain some of Qohen's character anxiety issues.